


Guitar String of Fate

by WriterSine



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Rock Band, Drug Addiction, F/M, I throw out the warning of mentions of drug use but this is pretty fluffy folks, Mentions of Substance Abuse, Netteflix, Rock band lifestyle, Romance, felannie
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-04
Updated: 2020-09-19
Packaged: 2021-03-06 22:55:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,440
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26276752
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WriterSine/pseuds/WriterSine
Summary: Felix is a guitarist in the Lions, a rock band just hitting their stride. All he cares about is playing his guitar and forging his own path with his friends. But the band's success is threatened when they trash a hotel room on tour. Their label, Argathan Records, pressures them to churn out another album as soon as possible, one written in collaboration with a new singer-songwriter named Annette.None of the Lions are happy about it. But Felix's mind begins to change when he listens to Annette's debut album.Annette is a talented industry songwriter, but she's ready to grow as an artist and push the limits of what she can do. When her record label offers her the chance to collaborate with the wild, dangerous Lions, she jumps at the opportunity. The Lions are at the top of their game, but can she work with such unruly people, or will they be her ruin?
Relationships: Annette Fantine Dominic/Felix Hugo Fraldarius
Comments: 6
Kudos: 17
Collections: Felannie Mini Bang 2020





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! This was written for the Felannie Minibang 2020 event hosted by the Felannie Fever Discord server.
> 
> The beautiful title card and art that will be featured later in this story were done by smallestbrown. Support her @smallestbrown on twitter!
> 
> You can follow me for updates @WriterSpice.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Lions face the music.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! This was written for the Felannie Minibang 2020 event hosted by the Felannie Fever Discord server. 
> 
> The beautiful title card and art that will be featured later in this story were done by smallestbrown. Follow her @smallestbrown on twitter!
> 
> You can follow me for updates @WriterSpice.

"Don't cry, baby, I'm coming soon. Watch for me by the light of the azure moon," Sylvain sang, throwing back his head as his voice rose with the final syllable. The stage lights bathed his shirtless body in cool, blue light. On screen the crowd roared. As his sustained note faded Felix stepped forward with his guitar. Chords cascaded from the speakers, aching with need, high and haunting. 

Watching the performance from his seat in the boardroom, Felix curled his left hand up where it rested on his thigh. His right resting in his lap, he fingered the notes, silently following beats of his own performance. "Azure Moon" always drove people wild with it's relentless beat, soaring guitar solos, and haunting lyrics of barely restrained passion. All it did was make Felix want to pick up his guitar. 

Sitting next to him, Sylvain glanced away from himself on the screen to Felix. He grinned, the corners of his eyes crinkling in amusement, and made a covert _rock on_ symbol. Felix couldn’t help but grin a little, though he did roll his eyes. 

Sitting on the opposite end of the table, their manager, Dedue said, "What was it you wished to discuss today, Mr. Solon?"

Solon turned his pale, rheumy gaze from the television, where Sylvain was launching into the last chorus of the song, to Sylvain and Felix sitting opposite him. "I want to talk about him." He pointed a finger at Sylvain then waved it to take in Felix, Ingrid, and Dimitri sitting to either side. "And the mess you four made of the hotel suite in Enbarr!"

Felix frowned and stopped his phantom playing. Ingrid folded her hands on the table and leaned forward slightly, her expression concerned. Dimitri grimaced and glanced at Dedue.

Sylvain sighed and leaned back in his chair. "Come on, Mr. Solon. We killed that night! " He gestured to the television screen where the four of them were bowing in front of the packed, cheering stadium.

"You hooligans may not care about the taint of bad publicity, but this company does. Especially when we're being sued for damages by the hotel. And the young woman you breached promise to. Ashe." Solon gestured to his personal assistant who stood hovering behind his chair, his arms full of papers. The young man’s eyes widened in alarm and he stepped forward and gave Solon two folders before retreating. Solon shoved the folders across the table without looking at them.

Dedue leaned forward and picked them up.

Sylvain rolled his eyes. "'Breach of promise'? This isn't the Middle Ages. We dated for a little while. We weren't _betrothed_."

Solon chuckled without humor. "Oh, the gossip rags would happily eat you up. Ashe." Ashe stepped forward again and offered Solon the papers and magazines he held. Solon grabbed the stack and tossed them onto the table. Ashe winced as the newssheets and magazines splayed across the tabletop. They ranged from grocery store tabloids that accused the band of seducing girls into a sex cult, to a few of the more respectable magazines like _Persons_ and _Fódlan Weekly_ that described Sylvain as the "playboy of power ballads" among other things. All of them had pictures of the four of them being escorted out of the hotel by police. 

Felix's jaw clenched. One of their bodyguards got hold of a paparazzo's camera and deleted it's contents, but obviously there'd been more than one.

Sylvain opened his mouth, grunted, and glanced at Ingrid. She glared at him.

Dedue sent them a quelling look, then turned Solon. "The band doesn't deny that things got out of hand that night. But they did not start the fight and we complied with police when the authorities were called. We regret the inconvenience that this has caused for the company and are committed to preventing it from recurring." He folded his hands on top of the folders. "I would be happy to call the band's lawyer to assist with the lawsuits."

Felix tensed. _Glenn would know what to do_ , he thought, his stomach twisting with equal parts anticipation and aversion. He turned to look at Solon.

"That won't be necessary," Solon said, waving a dismissive hand. "The hotel corporate office has already agreed to settle out of court. We are confident that we can pressure the young woman and her brother to do the same."

"Then what do you want from us?" Felix asked. "We're still on tour. We don't have time for this foolishness!"

“That’s what I’ve called you here to discuss,” Solon said. “Between your tour and the trouble you’ve caused Argathan Records is hemorrhaging money to support you. Finishing out the tour will only begin to recoup our losses without leaving much for you. Especially not enough for the lifestyle you all seem to enjoy.” He glanced meaningfully at the tabloids.

“Mr. Solon-” Dimitri said.

“We’re not like that!” Ingrid interjected.

Dedue held up a hand. “Mr. Solon, what are you asking?”

“You need a new album, and soon. Something guaranteed to sell. Something that will appeal to a broader market. We can give you an advance for the production but if you’re going to sustain your momentum and make money this time, you need to produce and promote as soon as possible.”

Felix clenched his jaw. Album production under such a tight deadline would be brutal. It would mean preparing for another tour as soon as this one was over. _Are they trying to kill the band?_ he wondered. A glance down the table revealed unhappy, uncertain looks on the Ingrid’s and Dimitri’s faces too. Sylvain was looking at the table. His discontent had a resolute quality about it that Felix found a little reassuring, in spite of himself. Sylvain seemed prepared to work. 

“I’ve made some arrangements,” Solon said, interrupting Felix’s thoughts. “We’ve recently signed a young pop singer, Annette. Collaborate with her for this next album. She’s new to performing but she’s a talented songwriter as well, with a lot of radio appeal.”

“Collaborate?” Dimitri said.

Sylvain looked up then, frowning. “We don’t collaborate.”

“Sylvain,” Dedue said.

Solon turned his watery gaze on Sylvain. “I suggest you learn to, Mr. Gautier. You don’t have a lot of other options otherwise.”

Under the table, Felix saw Sylvain’s hands clench into fists. Then he sat back and glanced left at Dimitri, Ingrid, and Dedue then right at Felix. “Fine, this one time. We’ll give you eight songs.”

“Twelve,” Solon interjected.

Sylvain’s eyes widened. He opened his mouth but Dedue interrupted, his voice calm and firm, “Nine.”

Solon turned his gaze to Dedue. “Ten.”

“Mr. Solon,” Dedue leaned forward. “Nine is more than reasonable. Especially on such short notice.”

“Then we get our independence back,” Felix said.

Solon’s gaze swept over them before settling once more on Felix. His smile was sharp and full of counterfeit warmth. “Get me two singles and you’ll have earned it, Mr. Fraldarius.”

~*~

They drove back to the house in silence. A slow-burning tension simmered through the car. Most of it came from Ingrid who was seething. Felix avoided her gaze and put in his ear buds. Dedue was reviewing the documents that Solon had given them. Dimitri was texting, a fretting line between his brows, his body hunched over his phone. Felix wondered if he was talking to his sponsor. 

Sylvain sat looking out the window, his expression serene, but in a glazed way. He’d ducked into the bathroom right before they left, too quickly to actually take a piss. 

Ignoring the bite of worry for now, Felix sat back and looked out the window as they wound through Fhirdiad’s streets from the chic business district into the older residential neighborhoods to their house.

Purchased with the money from their first album, the house was an aging mansion in a once fancy neighborhood that they’d repurposed into a shared home and studio. At the time it had been economical, none of them could have afforded their own place and it was easier to plan their albums and tours if they didn’t need to commute to studio space. 

Felix watched the sloping roof and single turret come into view. In between tours they’d taken to restoring it, bit by bit. Turning it into Felix’s first home since leaving his father’s.

The van came to a stop in the driveway and Felix got out. Two workers appeared on the apex of the roof and began laying new shingles. They paused to wave at the band as they got out. Sylvain and Dimitri waved back. Felix sighed and hurried inside. They were still paying off the mortgage too. As much as he hated to admit it, Solon was right. The thought made his gut churn.

Once the front door closed, Ingrid said, “I can’t fucking believe it.” She spun on Sylvain.

He held up his hands in a placating gesture. “I know, and I’m sorry, Ingrid.”

“You were the one that grabbed that guy’s hair,” Felix said. 

Ingrid’s cheeks flushed. She crossed her arms and glared at him. “You’re not one to be pointing fingers either, Felix.”

“There’s no use fighting about it now!” he snapped. “We’re stuck, don’t you see? Solon has us over a barrel. We’re drowning in debt. If we don’t do something the band is sunk.”

There was a moment of heavy silence then Sylvain said, “We’re not sunk. I don’t like collaborating either but I can write a couple of hits without this Annette girl.”

“Sylvain’s right.” Dimitri stepped forward and put his hand on Sylvain’s shoulder. “We’ve come through a lot worse than this. There’s a reason we made it this far.”

Sylvain grinned. “Well said, Dimitri.”

They looked at Ingrid. She still stood with her arms crossed, defiant-looking with her short hair, combat boots, jeans, and muscle tee. But there was a fragility to her anger, her shoulders slightly hunched. She straightened when she saw them watching her. “We’ve worked too hard to have someone like Solon ruin what we’ve built,” she said with a nod. “Now we just have to worry about this Annette ruining our sound. Who is she? Some pop diva?”

“Not exactly,” Dedue said. He was sitting on the couch, his laptop open. “Her name is Annette Dominic, but she goes by Annette. As Solon said, she just started performing. She only has one album under that name. But she’s been writing songs for people for a long time before that.”

Sylvain came over and dropped onto the couch beside Dedue. “Like who?” he asked, leaning forward to see the screen. “Maybe Lorenz has worked with her.”

“Hilda Valentine and Dorothea are the two biggest,” Dedue said.

“What! Really?” Ingrid’s eyes went wide she hurried across the room and sat on Dedue’s other side. Dimitri joined her. Felix went to Sylvain’s side and leaned down, bracing himself with one hand on the back of the sofa.

“That’s actually pretty impressive,” Sylvain said. 

Felix nodded. Hilda Valentine’s latest single had gone platinum within a week of hitting the pop charts and Dorothea newest album won an award last year. “Neither of those match our sound though,” he said.

“It says her lead single “Try for Me” has been on the Top 20 for five weeks now,” Ingrid said. “Let’s hear it.”

Dedue opened up the music video. The song began to play. It’s sound was bright, highlighted by piano chords and a bouncy, upbeat bass line. Annette was a soprano and her voice was also bright and cheerful as she sang the opening lines. Her control was good and her pitch was excellent and clear.

Ingrid grimaced. Dimitri sat back. 

Sylvain sighed. “This might be tricky. I’ll write the songs and we’ll have to have her sing a couple. What do you think, Felix?”

The bridge transitioned into the chorus. The song’s tone remained cheerful and upbeat. In the chorus Annette begged the person listening not to give up, to keep trying for their relationship. But it wasn’t desperate, it was earnest and affirming. Felix felt certain, purely on some sudden intuition, that Annette wanted the person she was singing to not to give up on themselves as much as the relationship. Listening to her sing, he found himself wanting that too. Every note, every beat, every word sung in Annette’s sweet, fervent voice seemed to penetrate right into the very center of his heart. His fingers tapped against the sofa back, keeping time. He felt light and happy.

“Felix-”

Without taking his eyes off the laptop screen he said, “Shh, I’m listening.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading! Please drop me a link and let me know what you think. 
> 
> Also, I made a playlist of musically inspirations for the Lions's and Annette's musical styles and the type of music I think they would write together. You can find that [Here.]()


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Time for a meet(ing) cute.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Content warning: Brief conversations involving confronting a drug user in this chapter.

“There you are, Felix.”

Felix pressed the pause button on his phone. The cheerful opening hook of Annette’s number two single off the  _ Sweets and Treats _ album ended abruptly. He glanced up from the bacon he was frying. 

Dimitri stood just inside the kitchen doorway, broad shoulders filling the frame. He wore his running sweats; his shaggy, sweat-dark hair tied back from his face. His mild demeanor carried an air of intent that Felix recognized meant Dimitri was on a mission.

He turned back to his bacon and picked up a pair of tongs. “What?”

Dimitri entered the room. There was a scrape as he pulled one of the stools out from the kitchen island. “I was hoping I could have a word with you, about Sylvain,” he said.

Felix sighed and flipped the bacon. 

“It’s gotten worse. He’s drinking and using more this time. I can tell. Ingrid’s worried too.” Dimitri paused.

Felix turned to face him. Dimitri was half perched on the edge of his seat. Felix crossed his arms and leaned back against the counter. “Yeah, I’ve noticed it as well. Sylvain’s always been high-functioning, you know that.”

Dimitri nodded. “I was wondering if you might have a talk with him before we head to Arianrhod. I’ve tried talking to him, but he just laughs and blows me off. I think he might listen to you, however.”

Felix scoffed. “He might listen to you too if you weren’t so sanctimonious about it.” 

Dimitri raised his brows. “Sanctimonious?”

“Look, I know that getting clean was a big deal for you. It’s a process and always will be. But if you’re trying to use it to connect with someone else who’s at a different point in that process, coming at it like a prince to his struggling subject is going to seem condescending.”

A thoughtful look crossed Dimitri’s face. “That was never my intention. But I admit sometimes I rely too much on formality when approaching important topics.”

“Yeah, that’s not going to work for Sylvain.”

“Yes, as I’ve noticed.”

There was a beat of expectant silence interrupted only by the sizzle of the bacon. Felix waved a hand back and forth. “I’ll talk to him. You don’t have to ask twice.” He pulled his phone out of his pocket and pressed the play button. Pop music filled his ears.

Dimitri nodded. His next words warbled in through the song. “Thank you, Felix. If you need any backup, all you need to do is ask.”

Felix nodded once and turned back to check his bacon. As Dimitri retrieved a sports drink from the fridge and left, Felix tapped the back button so he could listen to the whole song without interruption.

~*~

A few hours later, they were packing up the van for the trip to the airport. Felix waited until Dedue, Dimitri, and Ingrid were occupied, then went and pounded on Sylvain’s door.

“I’m coming, one sec!” Sylvain said.

“It’s me. Open up,” Felix said.

Sylvain opened the door and grinned down at Felix. “Hey, Felix, tell Dedue I’ll be down in a moment.” He turned away and placed his toiletry bag in his suitcase.

“There’s still time,” Felix said. He stepped inside Sylvain’s tidy room and sank onto the desk chair. “I wanted to talk to you about something.”

Sylvain zipped the bag closed and turned to face him, grin still on his face. “So serious! What’s on your mind, Felix?”

“We all know what you’re doing.”

Sylvain said nothing. His expression remained unchanged.

Felix went on. “We all like a good drink after a show, but your behavior’s getting out of hand. You need to clean up.”

“Been talking to our golden boy, lately?” Sylvain’s grin widened. “He worries too much.”

“You don’t think we all have eyes, Sylvain?” Felix snapped. “You’re not as subtle as you think. Ingrid’s worried too. It’s bad enough that you’re our friend, but what you’re doing jeopardizes the band too.”

Sylvain’s amusement faded. His shoulders slumped. “You’re right, things have gotten out of hand. Sorry, Felix.”

“Don’t apologize. Just don’t let it happen again. We didn’t get into music for the parties or the groupies or the drugs. We could have had all of that still living with our parents.”

“I know, Felix,” Sylvain replied. “I guess I got caught up in the lifestyle. But don’t worry, from here on out, the band is all that matters.” He jerked his head toward the bedroom door. “Now, let’s go blow the roof off Arianrhod and come back and write a great record with that Annette girl.”

~*~

As she walked down the hall of Argathan Records, Annette had to fight to keep ahold of her jangling nerves. She and Mercedes stepped into the elevator and she clasped her hands together to keep from fidgeting.

“Pretty exciting, isn’t it, Mercie,” she asked, hoping she sounded more excited than nervous.

Mercedes smiled and nodded. “It certainly is. The Lions wouldn’t have been my first choice for a collaborator for you, but they do have the more mature sound you’re looking for.”

Annette nodded. “Let’s just hope their not quite as hardcore as they seem.” The elevator doors opened and they walked down the hall toward the conference room where they were going to meet the band. “Either way, I’m ready to work hard!” She clenched her hands into fists. Even if they did turn out to be good-for-nothing partiers, Annette’s work ethic had never let her down. She would show Solon.

They reached the door. Annette knocked, then she thought better of it.  _ I’m a fellow collaborator, I shouldn’t ask for permission! _ She gave her doubts a mental shake and grabbed the handle.  _ Good manners never hurt anyone. _ Annette shoved the door open.

The Lions were already there, lounging around the conference table. At one end of the table was a man with orange hair, his head pillowed on his folded arms. A cup of untouched coffee stood near his elbow. He lifted his head and glanced her way. His hair was mussed just beyond the point of artful and verging on unkempt. But he straightened and grinned when their eyes met and suddenly Annette could believe all the stories she’d heard in the biz about Sylvain Gautier and his heartbreaking ways. Beside him was a big, broad-shouldered man with shaggy blond hair and an eye patch. His expression, however, was open and friendly. Dimitri Blaiddyd was a beast of a drummer on stage but seemed less so, in person. He stood and Annette revised her impression as she craned her neck to follow. Physically, definitely still a beast. The woman seated next to Dimitri could only be Ingrid Galatea, the bassist. She wore a blazer over a band tee and looked the most alert of the other band members. Her gaze cut across Annette, then over to Mercedes who stood just behind her. Her posture was foreboding, but then she smiled and stepped forward, offering out a hand. “Annette Dominic?”

Annette reached out to take it. Her toe caught on the carpet and Ingrid’s face turned from a look of friendly politeness to alarm as Annette pitched forward. 

“Annie!” Mercedes exclaimed. 

An arm wrapped around her waist and Annette jerked to a stop with a gasp. Her arms flailed and she felt someone else grab one of her hands. 

“Nice catch Felix,” Ingrid said over her head. She tugged at Annette’s hand.

Annette gripped Ingrid’s hand and struggled upright. The arm around her waist lifted as she found her feet. Once she was standing, Annette let go of Ingrid’s hand and turned to the person who had caught her.

It was the Lions’s guitarist, Felix Fraldarius. The only male member of the band who wasn’t tall and bulky, at least compared to his bandmates. He was still a head taller than she was. However, his lean frame wasn’t lacking for muscle, Annette could attest to that. His expression was enigmatic but when she met his gaze, he smirked. “Ready and eager, I see.”

Annette felt her cheeks heat. The Lions were on their third album in as many years, veteran performers of the music industry compared to her. If he assumed she was just another rookie starlet, Felix Fraldarius had another thing coming.

“Are you alright, Annie?” Mercedes asked, touching her arm.

“I’m fine, Mercie!” Annette said with a smile. She turned to Felix and held out her hand. “Ready and eager to work with you, Mr. Fraldarius.”

He blinked and took her hand. “Uh, yeah.”

The open doorway filled with a tall, strapping man with pale hair. Unlike the band, who wore tee-shirts and jeans, he was dressed in a tailored blue-green suit, accented by a patterned scarf. “Pardon me. Miss Dominic and Miss von Martritz, I presume?” His voice was deep and pleasant.

Mercedes turned and shook man’s offered hand. “Indeed. And you must be Mr. Molinaro, we spoke on the phone. Please, call me, Mercedes.”

He inclined his head. “You may call me, Dedue.” He turned to Annette. 

Annette realized she was still holding Felix’s hand. He seemed to realize it at the same moment and snatched his hand away as she let go. Half-turning away, he shoved a couple of loose locks of dark hair out of his face.

After she shook Dedue’s hand they all squeezed around the table and concluded introductions. 

Annette pulled her songwriting notebook and pen out of her bag and opened it to a blank page. “Alright, what sort of sound and theme do we want for the album? We’ll want a mix of tracks for radio play and audience appeal.” She wrote out a header at the top of the page:  _ Collab Album _ and glanced up.

Dedue spoke, “Obviously this will need to have appeal to dedicated Lions fans as well.”

“Of course,” Mercedes said. “But Annette has a very wide market appeal. She likes to take that into account when song-writing. So that there is something for everyone.”

Ingrid’s brows drew down in a questioning frown. “You don’t make the music  _ you’re _ interested in making?”

“Oh, I do! It just helps to know what my audience likes too. That way we all find something to enjoy. It’s the approach I took when I was strictly a song-writer,” Annette said.

Felix nodded once. “Leave her alone, Ingrid.”

Ingrid’s frown deepened as she turned it on Felix. “I’m interested in her method since it’s different than ours.”

Annette held up her hands. “It’s fine, everyone’s process is different. In fact, why don’t we talk about our processes. That might help get ideas flowing.”

Sylvain raised his head from his arms. Eyes half-lidded like he was groggy, he smiled and waved. “That would be where I come in. I do the bulk of the lyric-writing. Then we write the music. Then we shuffle that off to a song-writer we’ve worked with before for some feedback. We listen to half of it, finalize the song, then record. Rinse, repeat until we have an album.”

Dedue cleared his throat. “Yes, Annette. We’ve recently returned from Arianrhod and had not anticipated doing much work for the album during this meeting. Please accept my apologies, I should have communicated as much to Mercedes before we left.”

“Oh!”  _ That explains why they’re all so tired _ . “That’s alright,” Annette said. “I forgot, you’re all still on tour, aren’t you?”

“Will you forward me your tour schedule?” Mercedes said. “That way we can plan around it for writing and recording sessions.”

Dedue nodded and made a note.

“We’ll be in town for the rest of the week, getting ready for the next leg of the tour,” Dimitri said. “Perhaps you and Sylvain can meet up to discuss the new album then.”

Mercedes opened her phone, scrolling through Annette’s schedule. She glanced at Dedue, then Sylvain. “I’m sure we can arrange something.”

Sylvain grinned and leaned back in his chair, putting his hands behind his head. “I’m open.”

“I’ll come too,” Felix said.

Everyone turned to look at him, seated between Sylvain and Annette. Felix frowned at his bandmates. “I’ve helped with the song-writing before.”

“Are you sure, Felix? We’re probably going to be focusing on lyrics and themes at first,” Sylvain said.

Felix scoffed. “Someone has to make sure you stay on task.” He wouldn’t look at Annette. Instead he turned toward Dedue. “Arrange the schedule so I’m free then, too.”

_ Does he think I’m going to be a distraction? _ Annette wondered. “That won’t be necessary,” she said. Everyone at the table looked at her. She turned to Felix and met his eye. “I’ve studied your discography and am quite aware of what type of music your band likes to play. I’m more than ready to work with Sylvain. We’re in this to make music, not play around.”

Felix’s face grew steadily redder as she talked. “I never had any doubt in  _ you _ . You’re brilliant!” he said.

Annette’s eyes widened. Her indignant feelings melted away and she found she didn’t know what to say.

“That’s very flattering, Felix,” Mercedes said, breaking the silence. “Annie’s worked very hard, that’s why she’s so eager to embrace the chance to collaborate with the Lions.”

“Let him join us, Dedue,” Sylvain said. “Felix is the best guitarist out there and we need to turn this album around in a hurry. Three heads are better than two.”

Dedue glanced at Felix who was now staring at the table. He made a note in his phone, then he said, “Alright. We’ll need to get going, but I’ll be in touch, Mercedes.” 

Mercedes stood and shook his hand again. “It was a pleasure to finally meet you.”

They said their goodbyes. Sylvain made a point of leaning past Felix to shake Annette’s hand goodbye. “I’m really looking forward to working with you, Annie,” he said.

Annette took his hand and shook it twice before letting go. “Annette’s fine. And thanks. So am I.” Dimitri and Ingrid seconded Sylvain’s sentiment with words and handshakes of their own.

Felix got up and left before Annette could get to him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! I'm gonna plug the playlist again because I'm proud of it: [listen here](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6TbLdj2QjN703tDWL9Dpzm?si=hfDPcEYwSjWoR5nvfi7ujg)!
> 
> Follow me on Twitter @WriterSpice for updates!
> 
> And, at the time of this chapter's posting we got some very sad news in the US. It's a scary time, please take care of yourselves. I'm sending all of you my love.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading! Please drop me a comment and let me know what you think.
> 
> Also, I made a playlist of musically inspirations for the Lions's and Annette's musical styles and the type of music I think they would write together. You can find that [Here](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6TbLdj2QjN703tDWL9Dpzm?si=hfDPcEYwSjWoR5nvfi7ujg)!


End file.
